Jutsu and Science
by ChibiFoxAI
Summary: AU While fighting Orochimaru, Konoha regains a lost hero, much to Naru's chagrin. Soon after, the ghost of Naru's past come back, and the one she hates may be her only hope. FemNaru. Pairings decided. 2003 FMA anime
1. Chapter 1

AI: Welp, here I am with a new story, and it's not YGO related at all-

Of Red Series fans: *start forming an angry mob*

AI: Don't kill me just yet! I have always wanted to do this story since I was 13! For 7 years now! I am finally writing my first fanfic idea for you people!

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto or Full Metal Alchemist, two geniuses own them, not me…

_Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain something of equal value must be lost. That is alchemy's First Law of Equivalent Exchange. _

_In those days, I thought was its one and only truth, as my teachers carved that into my skull. Then it came._

_The Philosopher's Stone._

_Those who possess it, no longer bound by the laws of equivalent exchange in alchemy, can gain without sacrifice... create without equal exchange. We searched for it... and we found it._

_Then my world turned into Hell._

_-Uzumaki Naru, 1915, Age 10 1/2_

Chapter 1: Revival

Uzumaki Naru had faced many challenges in her life, but she overcame them with all of her power.

She helped free Nami no Kuni.

She took down the Ichibi no Shukaku.

She brought Tsunade back to Konoha.

She freed Yuki no Kuni.

She helped Temujin seal away the Stone of Gelel.

She even helped save Mikazuki no Kuni and helped its rulers see what truly mattered.

This time, however, the blond had a feeling that she had bitten off a little more than she could chew.

Scratch that last bit, A LOT more than she could chew.

Her current location was a forest just on the border between Kaze no Kuni and Hi no Kuni. A routine visit to Gaara with her teammate, secondary sensei, and nin-ken had turned into a death trap.

"Out of all the times for that pervert not to be here, why now?" She heard Sakura growl as the pink haired kunoichi knocked out another snake that was sent their way.

Naru rolled her eyes. "I said you could always take Hewie back to the village and get him."

"What, and leave you here to get eaten or something? No way, out of the question!"

"**Right!"**

"Even Hewie thinks so, don't you boy!"

Naru was about to retort when she dodged a fireball. "Close but no cigar!" She called back to her attacker then turned back to see a majority of the trees on fire from the shot. "Well what do you know, the forest is burning and for once it's not my fault."

Sakura turned to her teammate and was about to ask, but decided it would be a story for later, right now, they had to deal with a certain Snake Sannin.

"I suggest that you surrender Orochimaru! You're doing nothing but wasting your chakra, and we're still at full capacity! You haven't even grazed, let alone HIT us!"

At that very moment a hand shot out from the ground and grabbed Sakura's ankle. "Doton: Shinjū Zanshu no Jutsu!"

"Hewie, dig her up and take her to the Ero-Sennin!" Naru turned back to glare at Orochimaru. "Okay, so you go one of us. Note to self: don't invoke Murphy's Law again!"

Naru rushed at Orochimaru, spinning a kunai by the ring as she charged. Her knife met the Sannin's sword with a resounding 'CLANG', neither backing down.

"I see that you have become strong since the last time we met. Too bad Sasuke isn't here right now due to his probation. I'm sure that you could put on quite a show!"

Naru felt her pupils narrow to slits, yet her eyes remained their clear blue color. "Shut up!" The girl rammed her heel into her opponent's stomach knocking him back a few feet. Naru repressed her urge to gag when she saw the Snake Sannin smile.

"I have been wondering for a while now, Uzumaki, about when you are going to show me that other power of yours. Not your 'tenant' mind you, but that other power. The one you used to take Sasuke back to your village."

Naru froze before her face morphed into anger. "Like I would waste those teachings on scum like you, traitor."

Orochimaru blinked; for once he was almost stunned. If the young Uzumaki was anything like her mother, she would be showing off her abilities, not hiding them from the world. He shrugged. "If you won't willingly show it, I guess that I will just have to force it out of you."

Naru couldn't ease the sinking feeling that she felt. "HEWIE GET SAKURA OUT OF HERE NOW!"

Sakura, now freed from her earthly prison, was about to protest when she was slung over the giant canine's back and rushed out of the forest and back to the border village to retrieve Jiraiya.

"Now I can fight without any distractions!" Naru cracked her knuckles before pulling out a pair of metal gauntlets.

Orochimaru merely smirked and put his hands in a new hand sign. "Tell me fox-brat; did you ever hear about the technique that I used to take down my dear old teacher?"

"Don't you DARE call the old man your 'dear old teacher' again! You have no right!"

Orochimaru gave no indication that he heard the girl as a coffin rose up next to him. "I never got to use this one during the Chunin Exams, but I think that a little reunion is in order. Say 'Hello' to my Edo Tensei."

"Edo… Tensei." Naru mouthed. "Wait, 'Impure World Reincarnation'... a kinjutsu! You disturbed the soul of another just for your own gains? Jiraiya WAS right about what he said about you!"

"Oh, and what would that be?"

"That even with all your power, you're just a girly little man who prefers to have others do his dirty work!"

Orochimaru saw red at the last comment. "Enough chatter, prepare to die!"

Naruto readied herself into a fighter's stance as the coffin flooded the area with smoke upon opening. The next thing she knew, she was slammed against a non-burning tree. When she looked up, she was caught between horror, hate, and shock.

"The Yondaime?"

* * *

"Are you sure that we are going the right way?"

Sakura nodded to the white-haired Sannin. "I'm pretty sure. How often do you see a forest fire without Naru?"

"True. I just hope we are not too late."

* * *

Naru sneezed, throwing the battle off. "Why do I have the feeling someone is talking about me and fire?"

The newly revived Minato cocked his head and jabbed a thumb to the burning foliage.

"I was NOT responsible for that one. Teacher's lounge coffee maker at the Academy, yes. Trees, no."

Minato rolled his eyes and charged at her, a Rasengan already formed in his hand. Naruto flexed the little muscle she hand on her arms and punched the ground, causing a long range of spikes to rise from the ground, slowing the former Hokage down enough for her to get out of the way.

"Kage Bushin no Jutsu!" Naru smiled as the area was teeming with her clones, making the area look like a grove of giant grinning oranges. It was just like the night she beat Mizuki all over again.

"Good luck figuring out which one of us is the real one!" They all called out, jumping from place to place.

Minato felt a headache coming on from all of the orange. He didn't know why, but the color reminded him of something, or rather someone from his past. Unfortunately, Orochimaru's jutsu made it so any memories not related to jutsu and fighting were sealed away.

Then he saw another familiar color.

Red.

Some sort of red lighting was sparking from his opponent's hand.

He heard her murmur a 'Forgive me' before he knew an unbearable pain and knew no more.

* * *

Naru looked at the remains of the Yondaime, and for some reason unknown to her, she had tears falling down her face. It was confusing to her. This man caused her so much pain, yet she felt the need to apologize and mourn for him.

"I never thought that Scar's technique could be used so easily."

Naru turned her back to the former Kage and turned to Orochimaru. "You committed the ultimate taboo you freak. Give me one reason why I shouldn't do the same thing to you."

Orochimaru pointed back to the body. Naru looked back to her seemingly dead opponent and gasped as the body started to rebuild itself.

"Unless you seal away the soul or destroy the talisman, I'm afraid that he will keep regenerating over and over again."

Naru felt her left eye twitch as the Yondaime faced her for round two.

* * *

Hewie whimpered while he looked for the tree he had scratched. The fire had died down and there was barely any smoke left, but the wind was making things difficult to sniff out.

Jiraiya huffed. "Where do we go now?"

The air was filled with someone hitting something very hard, along with the screams of 'RAGE! QUIT! RAGE QUIT!' keeping beat with the hits.

"She's that way." Sakura deadpanned.

* * *

Naru panted as she attempted to soothe away the pain brought on by her tantrum-induced-headache. She didn't question the fact that it was her opponent that handed her a small jar of salve, which she took with a grateful 'thank you'. It was only after she relived her headache did she realize what just happened. Naru gave Minato a shaky smile.

"So… no hard feelings?"

Her response was a Rasengan to the gut.

Naru gave a small whimper from her spot on the ground. Her vision was then covered by a shadow.

"So you are still alive? Ohh... where did you find this strength?"

Naru squinted. "Sephiroth?" She groaned out. That line reminded her of a video game character that grated her nerves. She had to admit though, Konohamaru had a nice choice when it came to games from the Mikazuki no Kuni.

Back to the matter at hand. Naru clapped her hand together, her gauntlets ruined and put away long ago.

Minato raised an eyebrow and crouched down. "Have you resorted to praying now?"

"Prepare to see the Other Side." Naru answered cryptically.

Naru then trust her hands onto the older man's chest.

* * *

Jiraiya didn't know what to think when he came into the clearing. The minute he landed into the clearing from the trees, he observed that Orochimaru was yelling about 'bringing back a gate' and his dead student was currently standing over his current one.

Jiraiya felt rage building up as he put two-and-two together. He felt angry at Orochimaru for defiling Minato's memory and angry at Minato for putting Naru in her current state.

Minato stared down in horror as the memories came flooding back to him. He then stared at his own hand, which was now covered in his own daughter's blood.

Naru glared at him. "What? Finally grow heart?"

Minato teared up, but it went unnoticed to Naru's darkening sight. "Naru, I-"

Minato never got to finish as he was punch across the clearing by the Frog Sannin. "You get away from her!

Minato shook his head and gingerly touched his cheek. "Ow, wait, SENSEI?"

Jiraiya was shocked. "Minato, how are you not controlled?"

Hewie bit on Jiraiya's arm and dragged him back to Naru.

"**Naru dying over here!"**

* * *

Orochimaru growled as Jiraiya gathered Naru in his arms. The girl would have been an interesting test subject. He smiled to himself and disappeared into the ground. There were always more chances.

* * *

Naru groaned as the white light of the hospital blinded her. She attempted to sit up, but was pushed back down by a blonde blur.

"You're injured, lay down." The blur stated.

Naru pouted. "I'll be fine if I'm reclined. I've been here often, dude, so no worries."

The blur seemed to wince at this statement.

Naru blinked a couple of times before her vision cleared up. At the foot of her bed, she could see her faithful companion Hewie. However, she screamed when she saw who the blonde blur turned out to be.

"Naru, I can explain this-"

"DEAR SCIENCE I DIED! I DIED AND PROBABLY TOOK YOU WITH ME! I KNEW THAT YOU WAKE UP IN A HOSPITAL IN THE AFTERLIFE!"

Jiraiya took this moment to burst into the room. "WHAT IS GOING ON IN HERE?"

Naru stared at her perverted mentor for a couple of minutes before yelling again. "OH DEAR GATE, ERO-SENNIN IS HERE TOO? I MUST BE IN THE OTHER PLACE THEN!" Naru started crying. "Now I'll never see all my friends and family in Heaven!"

Tsunade and the council members Homura and Koharu tried their best to keep their faces neutral as they walked into the hospital room.

"You're not dead, brat. Calm down." Tsunade cut the tirade short.

"Hey Oba-chan!" Naru greeted. Minato seriously thought that she was going to be beaten to a pulp for a minute, but then calmed down when Tsunade patted her on the head.

"Uzumaki Naru, it has come to our attention that you fought the S-ranked missing-nin Orochimaru. Can you explain WHY you faced him and endangered your teammate?" Koharu asked.

Naru groaned and cradled her face in her hands. "Can't I get a break for once?"

Homura answered instantly. "No, now tells us what happened."

Naru leaned back on her bed. "Well, we were coming back from visiting Gaara and we decided to stay at an inn for the night. Hewie needed a walk so Sakura and I went with him. He smelled the snake and followed the scent. The rest, you probably guessed what happened next."

Hewie whimpered an apology and padded over to Naru's side, pushing Minato out of the way. **"I'm sorry Naru."**

Naru smiled and gave Hewie's nose a soft tap. "It's okay boy. We've been through worse than this."

Minato smiled at Naru. "He seems pretty loyal."

Naru's affectionate face turned into a hateful glare, causing the temperature in the room to drop. Hewie turned to the former Hokage and growled at him, fur raised and fangs bared.

"Get out, now."

Minato felt his blood freeze. "Naru please, I want to-"

"Get out. I hate you so much right now, and I don't want to see or hear your pathetic excuses about why you chose me. Now, get. Out. NOW."

Minato sighed as he rose from his seat and walked out the door.

Jiraiya stared at Naru for what seemed to be an eternity. "You know you might have missions with him."

"MURPHY'S. LAW."

Hewie shredded all of the research the Sannin had collected in the past few days as further punishment.

"WHAT WAS THAT FOR, YA MUTT?"

* * *

AI: Well, here is Chapter 1! I think that it seems rushed, but I'm not that good with fight scenes so this will have to do. As you can see, I went back and changed it to that Naru brought back Sasuke due to some plots I have in mind. Yeah, he is on probation right now but he and more details about the retrieval will come up later. Anyway, here is the list of terms:

Kaze no Kuni- Land of Wind

Hi no Kuni- Land of Fire

Nami no Kuni- Land of Waves

Yuki no Kuni- Land of Snow. From Naruto the First Movie.

Mikazuki no Kuni- Land of the Crescent Moon. Known for having advanced technology, like Hikaru's Gameboy thingy. Made an appearance in the 3rd Naruto Movie.

Shout Outs:

Hewie- Dog Companion of Fiona from the game Haunting Ground. Haunting Ground revolves around the traditional use of alchemy, like turning lead into gold and such.

Sephiroth- Apparently, Minato's Voice Actor in the English Dub of the Naruto games is known for doing Sephiroth, so I inserted that in here.

Naru's Gauntlets- These gauntlets and their techniques have been passed down a certain family line for generations. If you don't know who made them, rewatch FMA right now.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto or Full Metal Alchemist, two geniuses own them, not me…

_Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain something of equal value must be lost. That is alchemy's First Law of Equivalent Exchange. _

_In those days, I thought was its one and only truth, as my teachers carved that into my skull. Then it came._

_The Philosopher's Stone._

_Those who possess it, no longer bound by the laws of equivalent exchange in alchemy, can gain without sacrifice... create without equal exchange. We searched for it... and we found it._

_The shinobi world has been known to throw a monkey wrench into many things I had learned, but this one took the cake._

_-Uzumaki Naru, 1917, Age 12_

Chapter 2: Return

Naru sighed as she looked at her ruined gauntlets. They were charred and cracked in a few places, the transmutation circles on them were warped.

"Verdammt." She muttered and started to draw a circle on a scrap of paper on her work desk. She stopped after drawing the main circle and looked back at her hands. Awkwardly, she slowly clapped them together and almost hesitantly touched the gauntlets. Naru jumped back when there was a reaction, leaving her gauntlets looking as new as the day they were gifted to her.

Naru slumped back in her desk chair, pressing her palms to her eyes as she recounted the small bit of her tale she had left out.

* * *

Flashback

_Naru looked back at the giant Gate that had appeared that she attempted to send Minato into a few moments ago. _

"_Never in my life did I think I would see this."_

_Minato glared at her. "What is this?"_

_Naru seemed to be drained of all energy. "This is the end, for both of us."_

_**Not quite.**_

_Naru turned to see that not only had the Gate opened, but the Shinigami had also appeared._

_**It seems that fate is not set in stone.**_

_Naru screamed as a black tendril shot out from the Gate and pulled her in while Minato had the Shinigami's 'Life' hand was thrust into his heart._

Flashback end

* * *

Naru's frame shook as she sobbed. "Was geschieht mit mir?

Hewie whimpered and pawed at Naru's leg in an attempt to get her mind off of what had just happened.

There was a knock at the door. "Naru, are you home? It's just me."

Naru took a deep breath and sighed in relief. It was just Iruka-sensei. She wiped away any tears that had formed and stood up to answer.

"Es gut- I mean, I'm fine sensei! Just fixing up some things around the place!"

She heard Iruka chuckle. "Well, I came to see if you wanted to get some ramen since Tsunade-sama said your stomach could handle it now."

Naru smiled. "Sure! Just a minute!"

The young girl jogged to her door, stopping briefly to look at a picture of herself with two others, a blond young man and a taller one dressed in a suit of armor. She let her fingertips lightly brush the frame.

_Tut mir leid,__mein Lehrer._

* * *

Meanwhile at the Hokage Tower, Minato was talking with his successor.

He gave her a shaky smile. "Never thought that I would see you back in the village, Tsunade."

Tsunade returned the smile with one of her own. "It's good to see you again too, Minato. The village will be overjoyed to hear of your return."

At this point, Minato looked down. "Yeah, all of the villagers minus one. Tsunade, Sensei, what happened to Naru? What happened to my baby girl?"

Tsunade sighed and rubbed her forehead. "The village… took your death harder than you thought. Naru was seen not as the container, but a personification of the beast itself. The children were forbidden to know, but the hatred from the adults was passed onto them."

Minato felt his hands tighten into fists. "The wife of the Shodaime Hokage and my own wife were the containers before her, and they never receive anything like this."

Tsunade held up a finger, as if to prove a point. "That is true, but their statuses as jinchuuriki were kept secret from a majority of the village."

Jiraiya sighed. "I did not get to meet Naru until her first Chunin Exam, due to a majority of the Council voting that it was safer for their jinchuuriki to remain in the village in case anything happened. From what I could tell though, she didn't have the greatest childhood and travelled with someone when she was younger. The only thing that she got from this village in her early years was pain and suffering. Those are all the details I can really give right now."

Minato looked perplexed. "If you didn't meet her for long, then how did she learn how to do all those jutsu without handseals?"

Tsunade stood up from her seat while Jiraiya started shaking him. "What did she call that technique? Where did she learn it? Tell us everything!"

Minato shrunk away a bit. "So, you have no idea either?"

* * *

Naru smiled as her order of spicy shrimp ramen was set in front of her. She immediately dug into her food, earning a light scolding from her former sensei.

"Slow down Naru." Iruka scolded.

Naru pouted. "I had to eat hospital food for the last two days. It was like eating cardboard!"

During this exchange, Hewie had snuck his head under his companions arm and eaten the rest of the ramen, leaving only the broth. Naru looked back at her food before sighing and giving the rest to her trusty steed.

"I'll have another bowl please. Miso with some pork bits, egg, and fried tofu please."

"You truly have some strange taste buds, but that does sound pretty good. I'll have the same."

Naru turned around to see the one she almost hated the most entering the shop she liked to visit on an everyday basis. She huffed and put her chopsticks down. "Oji-san, can I also get a bowl of beef ramen? I would like both of those to go."

Iruka gave Naru a sad smile. "I see that you're feeling better Naru."

Naru smiled back as she paid for her purchases. "I'll pay for the last three, sensei. You have a good night."

Minato waved as his daughter walked out the door with her food and dog. "Oh Naru, Tsunade wants to talk to you first thing in the morning."

Naru gave a half-hearted wave along with a muttered 'Wer zum Teufel denkt er, er ist?' as she headed to her small house.

Minato chuckled and gingerly began to eat his order. "That girl is just like her mother."

Iruka laughed as he turned back to his meal. "I dunno Yondaime-sama. I say that she is more like her father."

Minato looked at Iruka with a look of surprise on his face. The chunin smiled and held out a hand. "Umino Iruka. I was Naru's Academy teacher."

Minato smiled and accepted the hand. "Namikaze Minato. Oh, Iruka-san, do you have any idea what language she was speaking just then?"

"Yes, and I believe that you do not wish to know what she just said or anything that she will say in the future."

* * *

Naru had bought the rundown cottage when she received her first paycheck as a genin and had been fixing it up ever since. Once her teammates and friends found out about her project, they all spent an entire weekend fixing up the place, painting, and decorating.

It was a small place, with three bedrooms, two small bathrooms, and an open living room that connected to her kitchen and dining area. One of the bedrooms was a library that also housed her study desk and out back was what everyone considered her 'work area', a shed that she could spend hours in just tampering with things to see how they worked, creating new jutsu, or working on something in the name of science.

Naru gave a sigh of content as she finished drinking the broth in her bowl. She felt better whenever she added fried tofu to her dish, as it soothed the savage beast inside of her quite literally. She looked at the mints that were given to all the customers who order out and then looked at the small shrine that she had set up in her 'living room' area.

Staring at the shrine for a few moments, she laid the mints down in front of a few pictures.

"Nina, Armony, Uncle Hughes, I miss you so much."

Naru sighed as she went to her work room. She had a long day and the only way to make up for lost time was to figure out some more jutsu in some scrolls she had unearthed in some ruins she had found during her journey home.

There was another knock at the door.

"Well aren't I just popular tonight."

Naru opened her door, only to find a certain Hokage on her doorstep.

"Um, hi?"

Naru stared at the older blonde for a few minutes. "I'm not interested in anything you're selling."

"Naru, I just want to talk."

"Yes and we can talk tomorrow when I have to see Oba-chan. Now, guten Nacht Yondaime-_sama_."

Then she slammed the door in his face.

* * *

Minato turned to Jiraiya, who was right behind him. "What should I do now?"

Jiraiya chuckled and motioned Minato to follow him. The two older shinobi snuck around the house and to the window that looked into the living room. The two men then peaked in to check on Naru.

They were not stalking her or spying on her, they were checking on her.

There was a huge difference.

Anyway, the two men saw that Naru was sitting on her couch, polishing what looked like a helmet with a long lock of hair coming out of it. Naru started stroking the helmet "Soon... soon, my love, we will be together again. No one will stand between us. No military, no shinobi, no homunculi, no chimera, not even Iruka-sensei's wrath will get in our way." She lifted the helmet "We'll be together, forever. Your 50% and my 85%... forever, and ever." Then she kissed helmet and put it back on a shelf.

"Sensei what is she talking about?" Minato asked his former teacher. When he received no answer, he turned to see Jiraiya taking notes.

"Your daughter is a gold mine." The perverted man giggled.

Minato groaned and dragged his teacher back to the Hokage Tower.

Naru smirked at the window. "Think that they enjoyed the show Hewie?"

Hewie was currently rolling on the floor, laughing. Naru plopped back onto the couch and joined her mostly-canine companion in laughter.

* * *

"Tsunade, does Naru hear voices in her head or something?"

Tsunade looked up from her sake dish with a smile. "So she tricked you too?"

Minato looked at Tsunade, then at the sake, then back at Tsunade. With a hefty sigh, he sat down and picked up a sake dish of his own. "Iruka-san is a very nice person. He's let me know a lot about Naru."

* * *

AI: So here we have Chapter 2! This was very fun to type up actually. As you can see, Naru has some feelings for a certain knight in shining armor.

Shout Outs:

Naru speaking German- Ametris is the Alter version of Germany. Enough said.

Fried tofu- A favorite food for a kitsune or 'fox spirit'; it's their junk food.

The percent thing- Comes from the FMA manga when Ed proposes to Winry.

Shinigami's hand- According to myth, he has the characters for 'Life' and 'Death' on each of his hands.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto or Full Metal Alchemist, two geniuses own them, not me…

_Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain something of equal value must be lost. That is alchemy's First Law of Equivalent Exchange. _

_In those days, I thought was its one and only truth, as my teachers carved that into my skull. Then it came._

_The Philosopher's Stone._

_Those who possess it, no longer bound by the laws of equivalent exchange in alchemy, can gain without sacrifice... create without equal exchange. We searched for it... and we found it._

_I know that the fur ball was popular, but I had no idea just how many people were connected to him. This mission was a definite live-and-learn experience._

_-Uzumaki Naru, 1917, Age 12_

Chapter 3: Learning

_Futari wa aruki-tsuzukeru _

_Ato ni wa modorenai kara  
Ima demo kono mune no oku _

_Kesenai tsumi wa itamu kedo  
DARLING _

Naru hummed a small tune as she made her way to Hokage Tower with Hewie padding beside her. She was a couple of blocks from her destination when someone grabbed her wrist.

"Um, excuse me?"

Naru turned around to see a boy about her age. He had blue shoulder-length hair cut in an asymmetrical style and brown eyes. He also wore a monk uniform with a long right sleeve, his right arm bandaged, and a pair of sandals.

"I'm sorry, but do you know how to get to Hokage Tower?"

Naru raised an eyebrow "Yes?"

The boy smirked and tightened his grip. "Good. The name's Sora, and I'll be taking over your village."

Sora was then introduced to the large bundle of fur and teeth that was Hewie.

* * *

_Iki isoide shiboritotte  
Motsureru ashi dakedo mae yori zutto sou tooku he  
Ubaitotte tsukandatte  
Kimi janai nara imi wa nai no sa_

Minato was humming his own tune as he turned the corner to Tsunade's office and smiled when he saw Naru. He was about to call out to his daughter when he saw that she was dragging someone by the collar of their shirt into the office. Another person to also walk into the office was a man who he had known in his younger years as 'Tenzo' when he had gone on missions with Kakashi.

"What's up Ba-chan?"

Tsunade twitch at her nickname but let it slide. "Naru, why did you beat up Sora?"

"Don't you lecture me! It was Hewie!" The blonde kunoichi jabbed a finger at the boy. "He said that he was going to take over the village and then my partner acted accordingly."

Tsunade covered her face with her hand and was about to explode at Naru for harming a member of the Fire Temple, but she was beaten by Yamato. "Why did you call us here, Tsunade-sama?"

Tsunade's face turned grim. "Four tombs were raided in the Fire Temple, each one being the tomb of deceased members of the Twelve Guardian Ninja."

Everyone but Naru had a determined look on their faces. "Uh… who are those guys?"

Sora looked scandalized. "You live in Hi no Kuni yet do not know about the force that protects your daimyo?"

Naru hit the boy upside the head. "I didn't go to school until my final year and a half. For the previous five years I was travelling the world. Sorry if I didn't brush up on the history of a country when I was still learning to read and relearning how to speak your funky nihongo language!"

Yamato took this opportunity to hit Naru upside the head. "The language is called 'nihongo' so there is no need to describe something by its own name."

Naru rubbed the sore spot. "Nice to see you too, Yamato-taichou."

"Uzumaki Naru, will you be serious about this?" Tsuande glowered at her adoptive little sister.

"Tch." Naru stuck her tongue out at Sora and resumed her trademark pose of slightly slouching with her hands behind her head. "So, what's up? Why were we called in?"

Shizune decided to step in before Tsunade flipped the desk to get to Naru. "It seems that the grave robbers are attempting to revive the four dead members, but for that, they need to bring them back to life."

"Okay, I get that we have the monk kid here and the Yondaime here, but why me and Yamato-taichou?"

Tsunade folded her fingers in front of her face. "Naru, while their leader is able to reanimate the dead, the revived victims come back with none of their rationality, physical prowess, or technique at their disposal. They need a concrete way to bring them back and only Orochimaru knows how, but he would not easily give up the Edo Tensei."

Minato flinched. Naru was still confused. "Again, what does this have to do with me?"

Jiraiya sighed and threw an envelope at Naru, who caught it with ease. "They also seemed to be working with this man, who appears to have the same talents as you."

Naru used a kunai to open the envelope and took out a picture of a man whose body seemed to comprise of a human head perched upside down on the body of a large beast. Naru immediately crushed the photo in her hands.

"You know that man beast?" Shizune was slightly taken aback by Naru's reaction.

_So that's why Tenzo and I are going on this mission. _Minato thought to himself. _It's insurance, just in case the fox tries to come out and play._

"Oh I know him alright, and he's MY target for this mission, and nothing anyone in this room can say or do is going to stop me." With that being said, the kunoichi turned and started walking to the door.

Jiraiya and Tsunade both flinched from the sharp tone in Naru's voice. Jiraiya was the first to speak up.

"Naru, that beast, who or what is he?"

Naru turned around with an unreadable expression on her face. "That thing's name is Shou Tucker, and he's infamous for turning females into his little experiments."

When Naru opened the door, she saw two ANBU she recognized as Yugao and Tora, from their masks, rush in.

"Hokage-sama, we came to inform you of a disturbance at Uzumaki Naru's house. Five figures were seen entering and leaving with multiple items. We already sent others to go after them."

Naru felt like the floor had been pulled from under her feet. "HEWIE, WE WAS ROBBED!"

* * *

Outside of Konoha, five people were camping out, sitting around a fire and eating what appeared to be roasted sweet potatoes. The group consisted of two men, two women, and a mysterious beast.

One had long dark brown hair and wore globe-like earrings. She also wore red lipstick and orange eye-shadow. She had blue eyes and wore a choker around her neck. Her outfit consisted of a qipao-like dress that was magenta with black and tan stripes and pink sleeves; her bottom was light purple stockings that went down to her feet with multiple striped sandals. Her name was Fuen.

The second was a large bulky man with black markings on his face. He had spiky black hair with dark eyes. He wore standard shinobi pants and sandals, and a long sleeved gray top with a green vest with three striped on it. His name was Fudo.

The third was voluptuous woman who dressed in provocative attire. Her clothing consisted of a dark-pink and shoulder less gi-like shirt with loose arm-warmers reaching her upper arms and light-purple spandex-shorts. It also consisted of black low-heeled boots with an olive-green tipping. She had two simple earrings covered by her hair. She had blue eyes and long red wavy maroon hair, which stretched down to her waist, and fair skin with a beauty-mark under the left side of her lip. Her name was Fuka.

The fourth member was a large hulking figure covered in layers of clothing so only his glasses were seen. He seemed to be muttering to himself and cradling a bundle wrapped in several layers of cloth. He was the infamous Shou Tucker.

The fifth member was not as tall as the other make, but from the way the group was sitting, it was obvious that he was the leader. He had long white hair and wore a dark maroon cloak that had the same three stripes as the other three humans in his group. His name was Furido.

"So, this Naru girl, why is she our target again?" asked Fuen.

Shou chuckled. "While I have the knowledge, she has the tools. She was friends with my dear little girl, so I doubt that she will put up a fight." The beast chuckled again before going back to whispering to his bundle.

Fudo smirked. "I hear that she has some strong teachers that will come to her aid." The man ten patted a wrapped pile of stolen items. "We truly do have the perfect bait."

"From what you said, the girl has a Wind attribute." Fuka smiled then licked her lips. "I am going to enjoy this mission very much."

* * *

On the outskirts of Konoha, an incredibly loud scream broke the peaceful silence of the afternoon.

"WHAT HAPPENED TO MY FREAKING HOUSE?"

Indeed, the small and humble abode of one Uzumaki Naru had been turned on its head, so to speak. Dishes, glasses, and silverware were strewn about and broken. The couch had been shredded and turned upside down. Knick-knacks were broken beyond normal human repair and strewn on the floor as well and picture frame were broken. Any food was missing from its proper place. Naru looked at the place in horror when something dawned on her.

"MY LIBRARY!" Naru ran to her sacred domain, only to find most of the books and boxes that she had stored in there were missing. At least her large journal was still in place, that much she was thankful for. Then something hit her.

"MY ROOM!" By the time Naru reached the doorway of her bedroom, she was nearly in tears.

All of her clothes, mainly orange jumpsuits, were ripped to shreds. Any clothes that we not part of her normal training clothes or were too small for her, yet she insisted on keeping because of memories, were missing. Her bed was slashed and the inner stuffing of the mattress was sticking out.

Naru was numb as she slowly walked to a corner of her closet and lifted a loose floor board. To her relief, a box full of her most prized possessions was still in there. She held the box to her chest and cried. Her home, her little corner of the universe, was gone.

* * *

Minato, Yamato, and Sora explored the house with grim expressions. Never had they seen such an act inflicted on such an innocent person's home. Yamato bent down and cradled a broken bonsai plant in his hands.

"I got these seed from the Land of Rivers once, and I gave some to Naru. She was able to grow them using her special 'powers', if you can call them that. The Sandaime thought she had the Mokuton ability, and even when it was proven that she did not have the trait, we still trained some. She took such good care of them, along with her other plant 'Ukki-san', treating them like her children…" The ANBU then attempted to save as many of the plants as he could.

Sora walked around a bit before a cracking sound was heard. He lifted his foot to see a picture of a man with dark hair, a developing beard, and glasses. Next to it was a picture of a girl with red hair and warm, brown eyes. The third broken frame was broken and empty.

"No one should do this to a shrine. They seemed like such good people."

Minato navigated to Naru's room, leaning against the door frame as he took in the damage.

"The villagers never did this, just so you know."

Minato let his gaze fall on Naru, who had a rather large shoe box tucked under one arm and was clasping a silver pocket watch in her other hand to her chest.

"They tried once when I was a kid, and the ANBU made examples of them. Don't think that too many people were too keen about being hung from a flagpole by their skivvies…"

It was at this moment that Minato's body acted on auto-pilot. He hugged Naru.

He hugged his daughter for the first time in almost thirteen years.

He embraced her and let her cry.

Hewie whimpered a bit and nuzzled Naru's leg, hoping to bring some comfort as well.

"Um, excuse me?"

Both blondes let their gazes fall on the doorway, where Sora was standing, looking a bit uncomfortable.

"We need to get moving before we lose their trail. That mutt of yours can track them, right?"

It took both Naru and Minato's strength to hold back Hewie form mauling Sora, yet again.

* * *

AI: So here we have Chapter 3! Yeah, I kinda did feel bad for wrecking the house… but there is a good reason, I assure you. From what you can tell, Sora and a bunch of the other characters introduced here are from a filler arc from Shippuden. Stay tuned for Chapter 4!

Shout Outs:

The song that Naru was humming in the beginning was Kesenai Tsumi, the second ending to Full Metal Alchemist.

The song Minato was humming was Haruka Kanata, the seconding Japanese opening for Naruto.

Song Lyrics were supposed to be underlined... but something screwed it up...


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto or Full Metal Alchemist, two geniuses own them, not me…

_Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain something of equal value must be lost. That is alchemy's First Law of Equivalent Exchange. _

_In those days, I thought was its one and only truth, as my teachers carved that into my skull. Then it came._

_The Philosopher's Stone._

_Those who possess it, no longer bound by the laws of equivalent exchange in alchemy, can gain without sacrifice... create without equal exchange. We searched for it... and we found it._

_When I saw the damage in my house, I thought that I had lost everything. Then I realized how many people truly did care about me._

_-Uzumaki Naru, 1917, Age 12_

Chapter 4: Chase

Naru sighed as she looked at her house once more from the outside before she futilely locked it up so nothing else could be stolen from a passing civilian. Before Sora could retort, Yamato covered the boy's mouth.

"I'll fix this stuff later. We have to focus on the grave robbers right now!"

Sora raised an eyebrow. "What makes you think that your Hokage will let you take on this mission?"

Naru jabbed a thumb back at her house. "I'm going whether you like it or not, so deal with it!"

Sora rolled his eyes and folded his arms. "Whatever, just don't get in my way."

"Who's the one with an actual rank to go on missions here?"

Yamato knocked their heads together. "Focus, both of you!"

* * *

Kazuma, or 'Furido' as he was called by his companions, smirked as Fuen changed the layout of the area with her special map. Now, each one of them had an opponent.

Fuka would fight the brat. The woman did not mind as long as she would be fighting someone with a Wind affinity.

Fudo would fight the Jounin. He would most likely die, but Kazuma did not care. As long as he plan came into fruition, he did not care about the sacrifices.

Fuen would fight his son, the boy that he abandoned long ago. The boy would be pushed to his limit, he knew that, and he anticipated such.

This left Kazuma to fight the newly revived Yondaime Hokage. That man represented Konoha when it was in its prime, but he was a Hokage, and he had to be dealt with, permanently.

He could hardly wait for the honor of heralding a new age to Hi no Kuni.

* * *

Naru stared at the cave that Hewie had led them to, with a pair of ANBU waiting for them out front. Naru didn't wait for a debriefing, she just ran into the tunnel that had giant-beast sized footprints leading to its depths.

"Naru, wait!" Minato tried to go after her, but the passageway closed as soon as his daughter entered, leaving Hewie to paw at the new obstruction.

"Looks like there is no going back once you enter, huh?" Yamato said grimly.

"**Naru is going to run into trouble."** Hewie whined.

Minato scratched the large creature's head in comfort. "I'm sure that she'll be fine, but the only way we can find her is if we go into the other caves ourselves."

Yamato and Sora nodded.

"So, who wants to take Hewie with them?"

* * *

Naru growled to herself as she walked down the tunnel, a small fox fire glowing in her hand. She would have preferred to run or speed walk, but if she walked, she could probably find a small detail that she would have previously missed.

**You are finally learning, kid.**

Naru rolled her eyes. _Don't get too used to it Kyuubi._

**Is that really how you treat your teacher? After I taught you how to manipulate your chakra and I taught you the history of the nations and other stuff that they whitewash in that germ-infested cesspool you call a 'school'.**

Naru smiled. _I will admit, you teaching me how to manipulate chakra came in handy and let me create a bunch of jutsu. Still wish I could have learned more of them._

**Kid, I'm a fox. I don't have hands. I only saw the basics like your 'bushin' and 'henge' from the Rikudo Sennin. How am I supposed to teach you this stuff if I don't know it and only have to shout to use it?**

Naru chuckled a bit. _I guess you are right._

**So, how goes the thing with the Yondaime?**

Naru stopped and looked at her free hand. _Kurama?_

The fox froze. Naru only used his real name if she was serious. **What happened?**

_Well, after we got back from the borderline, I-_

Naru was interrupted by a shout of 'Futon: Hanachiri Mai' and a small tornado of pink petals came towards her. Naru extinguished the flame to free both her hands.

"That sounded like Lust, but it can't be!"

Naru jumped out of the way and threw a kunai at the direction that the attack came from. The younger girl then grit her teeth as the shadow caught the kunai, then sniffed it, a look of excitement spreading across her face.

"Could it be?"

Naru took a step back as a woman appeared in front of her. A shriek of 'EEEEK' was heard when said woman licked her cheek.

Naru jumped back, holding her cheek. "WHAT WAS THAT FOR LADY?"

Fuka smiled. "There is no doubt about it. You do have a 'Wind' attribute. Furido wasn't lying."

Naru raised an eyebrow. "So?"

Fuka smiled. "Why don't you be a good girl and join my collection?"

* * *

Yamato dodged another punch that was thrown at him. For a seasoned ANBU Captain, such as himself, this man may have had the strength, but he did not possess any control over it.

"Ready to give up yet?" Fudo sneered. "You better not be! I'm all fired up!"

Yamato quickly went through a series of hand seals. "Mokuton: Jubaku Eiso!"

* * *

From the outside, Yugao's team of ANBU could hear a dying man's last scream as a tree shot up from the cave roof.

Sora did not know how long he walked through the dark and twisting corridors, but when he came to a dead end, a woman with high-cheek bones greeted him.

"Well, hello little boy. Came to play?"

Sora narrowed his eyes and brought out his triple-blade claw. This would be way too easy.

Minato sighed as his child's ninken lead the way, sniffing out the trail that had been left by one of those who ransacked her small cottage.

"So… Hewie, are you some chakra beast or an Inuzuka pup or what?"

Hewie snorted. **"If you must know, I am actually a chimera. I used to be a soldier, or at least I was going to be before I was fused with a wolf, a lion, and a bear."**

Minato was taken aback. "You used to be human?"

Hewie nodded. **"Yeah, I was told I was getting a medical screening, but the government was being controlled by a small group from behind the scenes, for years really. I was sent to a Lab where they conducted all sorts of inhuman tests on me. Then one day, Naru found me and refused to give me up. She gave me a second life to serve a country with a fair and just set of laws. It may be… primitive compared to Ametris, but it is a good government."**

"No matter what she chooses, you will follow her?"

"**No matter what. If she says kill, I will kill. If she says die, I will die. I shed my old name and life the day my country turned its back on me and let those psychos do what they wanted to innocent people. Naru gave me a new name, a new purpose, and power to protect those who I consider precious."**

Minato nodded, a new respect for Hewie lighting his eyes. He smiled and picked up his pace so he was right next to Hewie. "If that's the case, then let's pick up the pace, shall we?"

Hewie responded with a wolfish grin.

* * *

Naru ran as Fuka fired condensed balls of wind at her. "What is this lady's deal? Why is my 'Wind' so special? And what was she talking about 'collection' and all that nonsense? And just how does she have attributes for all the average elements? That's impossible to house in one body, even if she stole all of them!"

Naru spun around and threw another kunai at the woman. "Hien!"

The chakra coated blade soared threw the air and managed to cut some of Fuka's hair, and it had a strange result. Fuka's body started to shrivel up before she disappeared into the earth again. Fuka then reappeared, looking like what had just happened was nothing but a dream, but her hair was still cut. Fuka's hair started to writhe like snakes as her face seemed to take on the likeness of a snake.

"You cut my life force, you soul, you brat! You'll pay for that!"

Naru froze when the woman seemed to shift into a 'Medusa Mode' leaving her unable to move. Fuka then cupped Naru's face.

"I'm not one to play for the same team, but your chakra is rare, so I guess I can't complain."

* * *

Sora stared the corpse that had once been Fuen. He gave a heavy sigh and leaned against a rock. The killing was done and over with, but it didn't mean that he had to like it.

"Sora?"

The mentioned boys head snapped up to see Minato and Hewie on a higher trail in the cave.

"Minato-sama?"

Minato and Hewie jumped down and jogged over to Sora. "What happened here?"

Sora shrugged and held up a scroll. "She was one of the grave robbers. I had to do it… she was manipulating the caves with this weird map too…"

Both males froze and felt as if something was being drained from them. Both of them clutched their heads from the sudden headaches, but Minato was the only one to pale in horror as the image of the Kyuubi's eye surfaced to their minds.

"Naruto!"

* * *

Fuka smirked as she continued to drain chakra from her prey.

_Finally, after all this time, I have a Wind chakra!_ Fuka thought to herself. _No one will be able to stop me now!_

**I wouldn't be too sure about that.**

Fuka opened her eyes to see that she wasn't in the cave anymore, but in what looked like a sewer, but it was missing water. Her current location looked like the heart of the system. She froze when she felt a hot puff of air hit her from behind. The maroon haired woman turned around only to meet with the legendary Kyuubi no Youko, who was grinning evilly at her. Fuka tried to scream, but nothing would come out.

**Now, you were just trying to kill my precious container, am I right? And for what, power?**

Fuka said nothing. She fell backwards and attempted to crawl away, but she was cut off by a large, orange tail. She was frozen as the large fox took her hair, starting at the base of the woman's neck, in between its claws.

**Just so you know, I can see everything my vessel can, but I can figure things out quicker. Being a couple thousand years old does that to you.**

Kurama grinned gleefully as the woman's dying shriek filled its chamber.

* * *

Kazuma snorted. It was past the ron-de-vous hour, so he had the feeling that his other teammates were dead. He looked back at Tucker who was setting up various items and making calculations, all the while holding his bundle.

"Are you almost done?" Kazuma asked.

Tucker smiled, the setting sun glinting off his glasses. "Actually, I almost have everything. I just need the girl, and everything will be complete."

Kazuma sighed. "Are you positive that she'll help you?"

Tucker smiled again and stepped to the side, revealing another young girl who was tied up.

"Kazuma-san, this is Moegi, the granddaughter of one of the elder council and one of Uzumaki Naru's precious little followers."

* * *

AI: Yeah, I am making this shorter than the filler arc from the anime, just so you people know… partly because I want to focus more on Naru's interactions with Minato, I suck at writing fight scenes, and I want to get to the Ametris Arc. Yes, I did just give spoilers away for my own story. Stay tuned for the exciting conclusion come Chapter 5!

Meanings:

Futon: Hanachiri Mai- Wind Release: Flower Scattering Dance

Mokuton: Jubaku Eiso- Wood Release: Tree Bind Flourishing Burial

Hien- Flying Swallow

Shout Outs:

Laura Bailey provided the voice for Lust in FMA and used the same tone for Fuka in the Naruto Shippuden Dub.

Travis Willingham provided the voice for Fudo and Roy Mustang, hence the 'fired up' thing. He is married to Laura Bailey in real life. He also provides the voice of Thor in Ultimate Spider.

*Also, please check Chapter 1 for a plot change. Yep, turns out I decided to keep Sasuke in this, so it turns out that Naru brought him back here.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto or Full Metal Alchemist, two geniuses own them, not me…

_Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain something of equal value must be lost. That is alchemy's First Law of Equivalent Exchange. _

_In those days, I thought was its one and only truth, as my teachers carved that into my skull. Then it came._

_The Philosopher's Stone._

_Those who possess it, no longer bound by the laws of equivalent exchange in alchemy, can gain without sacrifice... create without equal exchange. We searched for it... and we found it._

_I cannot say that I was proud of what I did to Tucker, nor can I say I am happy about the outcome of the mission. I'm just happy that it's over for now._

_-Uzumaki Naru, 1917, Age 12_

Chapter 5: Battle of Wills

Naru sighed and slumped against the wall of rock that was next to the exit of the accursed labyrinth that was the cave she had just fought in. She held her hand in front of her face and gave a slight smile.

"At least I didn't have to resort to using Scar's technique again." Naru quietly mused. She inhaled and attempted to stand up, but fell back on her rear. Naru grumbled as she continued to try to stand. "Stupid tongue lady, draining my energy…"

"**Naru!"** The kunoichi gasped in pain as she was slammed into the ground by her loyal companion.

"Hewie, it's nice to see you, but I can barely move as is. Can you get off me please?"

The large beast got off and started to rummage through his pack with his snout. After a few moments, he produced what looked like a mason jar with a light blue gel in it. Naru happily took the bottle from her chimera friend and popped the cork off, guzzling down half the contents of the glass container, sighing out a blue puff of smoke.

"Screw going to the hospital, I have my miracle potion right here!" Naru cheered as she immediately stood up and repacked the bottle into Hewie's satchel. She then caught eye of three figures heading her way, but relaxed when she saw it was just Sora, Yamato, and Minato.

"What took you guys so long?" Naru asked as she threw them each a vial of the potion she had previously consumed.

Minato caught it and gave a gracious 'thank you' and happily drank the concoction his daughter provided him. Yamato smiled and also drank his, but Sora just held it in front of his face. "What the heck is in this stuff?"

_This is it! My daughter does care about me_! When Minato turned around, he wept to see Sora and Naru pulling at each other's faces.

"How do you know we aren't the enemy in disguise?"

"Who would want to copy your ugly mugs?"

"Who has an ugly mug?" Both of the preteens withered under the frightful gaze of one Tenzo Yamato. Naru and Sora went from pulling faces to hugging at the sight.

"Yamato, stop it." Minato ordered.

* * *

After the younger two of the group had calmed down, Minato took out the map that Sora had taken off his opponent.

"I believe that the map you're holding belongs to me."

The search party turned to see a man with white hair and a scar across his face, holding out a hand. "I believe that it's rude to stare."

Yamato narrowed his eyes. "You must Furido. That Fudo guy wouldn't shut up about how great you are."

Naru raised an eyebrow, but she didn't look back at the ANBU. "How was your fight anyway? You didn't look that damaged."

Yamato sighed. "He was talking such a big game that I took him out in one hit."

Naru stuck out her fist and Yamato wordlessly bumped it. "That's my taicho."

Furido's mouth formed into a tight line as he crossed his arms at the gesture. Then, he noticed Sora and Minato behind the two shinobi and grinned. This changed everything.

"So, you must be young Naru, am I right?"

Naru glared at the older man. "So what if I am?"

This girl is too easy. Furido smiled. "I believe that you know an associate of mine. A 'Shou Tucker' if I remember?"

"WHERE IS HE?" Hewie bit the back hem of his friend's jacket to keep her from attacking the man, but he was growling at the mention of the man who was responsible for his current form.

Furido motioned in the direction of a faint light which would have gone unnoticed unless it was pointed out by someone who had come from it. "He's in that cave over there, and I believe that he is entertaining a guest named 'Moegi' if I recall."

Naru immediately jumped onto Hewie's back, the chimera jumping into the foliage and racing towards the light. Before any of her companions could follow her, Furido blocked their path.

"Let's let the little lady have her reunion. Against me, you'll need all the help that you can get."

"Then it's a good thing we were sent!"

The four males turned to the right to see Sarutobi Asuma and Jiraiya.

* * *

Naru gripped the fur on Hewie's neck so tightly that her knuckles were turning white. The cave was only a few yards away now.

"Hewie, I want you to grab Moegi and go back to the village."

"**I'm not leaving you with him."**

"Hewie, don't make me order you. You got your revenge on the scientists already, I want mine now."

"**But Naru-"**

"HEWIE!"

The chimera gave Naru a forlorn look. **"But maybe he-"**

Naru jumped off the large animal's back. "It's impossible, and you know that. The only one who could possibly reverse this is the Guardian of the Gate."

"**Oh yeah. That ass."**

Naru gave an eye-roll and walked up to the mouth of the cave. She took in a deep breath and let it out in the form of a yell. "IF YOU WANT ME TO COME IN, SEND MOEGI OUT FIRST! SHE'S SOMEONES DAUGHTER!"

There was a brief shuffling before the sound of small feet padding down the stone floor was heard. When Naru was able to see a mop of orange hair coming in her direction, she instinctively crouched down. She had an armful of crying Academy student within seconds.

"Naru-neechan!" Moegi sobbed as the older girl carried her to the large canine-like creature and settled the crying girl on the large furry back.

"Hewie, get back to Konoha as fast as you can and have them send back-up to the baka Hokage, okay?"

Hewie nodded and turned to run back to Konoha, Moegi clinging and crying the whole way.

Naru sighed and continued walking into the cave.

* * *

Asuma ducked as Furido slashed at him with a kunai, both of them wearing faces of determination. Meanwhile, Yamato, Sora, Jiraiya, and Minato were fighting off an army that had been resurrected by Furido's technique, Doton Soseijutsu: Shishi Dojō.

"Just like the Third War, huh Minato?" Jiraiya called out to his former student.

A flicker of yellow was seen on the battlefield before Minato reappeared next to the Gama Sannin. "It kind of is, but the enemies would stay down back in the day instead of getting back up."

Yamato was mainly sticking to basic taijutsu accompanied by a mass amount of Wood and Shadow Clones. Sora's bandages had fallen off long ago and he was now slashing at the zombies with his clawed hand.

Furido smiled and flipped back so that he was standing on one of the large rocks that had risen from when the land reverted to its original form due to Fuen's jutsu cancelling with her death.

"You, young man. Your name is Sora, correct?"

Sora gnashed his teeth and tore through another zombie. "Who's asking?"

Furido smiled. "What do you know about your father?"

* * *

Naru glared at Tuckers back the entire walk to the heart of the cave. Tucker looked back and smiled, the light from basic fire torches glinting off his glasses.

"Dear Naru, I hope that you have been brushing up on your skills?"

Naru's glare became colder. "I am never rusty when it comes to alchemy, I can assure you that."

"Oh, then what is a human body made of?"

"Such childish prattle, especially from someone who's a, wait, used to be a State Alchemist." Naru felt some sadistic glee upon seeing the look of hurt and anger in Tuckers eyes. "The human body is composed of Water: 35 Liters, Carbon: 20 Kg, Ammonia: 4 Liters, Lime: 1.5 Kg, Phosphorus: 800 g, Salt: 250 g, Saltpeter: 100 g, Sulfur: 80 g, Fluorine: 7.5 g, Iron: 5g, Silicon: 3 g, and 15 other elements in small quantities..."

Naru trailed off when she saw a mound on top of a tarp in the middle of a familiar array. A very specific array that had been carved into her mind to know, but never use.

She let her eyes trail over to a work table and she covered her mouth to prevent any screams from escaping. On the work table was the rotting corpse of the Nina doll that Tucker had transmuted two years ago when Alphonse had become a walking Philosopher's Stone. She had seen long dead and rotting corpses in one of Orochimaru's labs that were in better condition than the Nina doll.

Naru backed up to one of the cave walls and slid down so that she was now sitting on the cold, damp floor.

"My Nina, my beloved child, Naru came to visit you. She's going to help me bring back Edward and we can be a family again."

Naru wanted to give into her primary instincts to flee, to fight, to get help, anything to get out of this situation. Unfortunately, she could not flee. During her moment of shock, Tucker and transmuted a pair of stone hands that were holding her to the wall.

Tucker approached the array with a hairbrush. He took out a few golden strands from the brush, but they were darker and longer than Naru's hair. "Now I have a bit of his soul…"

* * *

Asuma stared at the dead body of his former ally with a twinge of sadness and remorse flowing through him. For years, thy both had been wrong about who was the true 'King' of Hi no Kuni, and it had taken him years to finally realize what it was when his sister had finally told him the day Konohamaru was born.

"We were both wrong, Kazuma." Asuma addressed the corpse. "The true 'King' is the future generation. Hopefully, your 'King' will realize this too."

Asuma's head turned with a resounding snap towards the direction where Hewie and Naru had run off to when he heard a blood curdling scream.

* * *

Minato panted while he rested against one of the trees on the battle field. In the center of a small crater was Sora, whose hand had reverted back to normal.

"Sensei, I may have sealed that furball in my daughter," He swallowed, "But I never meant for her to become a tool for my own plans."

Jiraiya smiled while Yamato finished draining away the demonic chakra. This caused Minato to reflect on an earlier event.

"How come I knew Naru was in danger, and how come I saw that furball again?"

"Yondaime-sama!"

Minato turned his head to see Yugao and her team of ANBU. "Where have you been?"

"The criminal set up various traps and used a jutsu that created bodies from the soil. It was like one of those old horror movies."

Before he could comment, Minato felt his blood run cold when the same blood curdling scream that Asuma had heard reached him.

From that day on, none of the shinobi present had ever seen a man seemingly recover from battle fatigue and speed off in the direction of the scream as swiftly as Minato had that night.

They were frozen until a second scream filled the air, causing them to follow their former leader.

* * *

When Minato and the ANBU arrived at the scene, they felt as if they had entered another world.

The first thing that they noticed was that there was blood everywhere, but mostly pooled in the middle of some sort of elaborate design on the floor.

Next, they saw the rotting corpse of a girl on a workbench, but most of the body was covered by a familiar orange jacket. If they were to look at the wall opposite to the table, they would have seen the stubs of broken rock that used to be a pair of fists, tightly gripped around a certain blondes' wrists just a few moments prior to their arrival.

The main attraction of the cave was a certain blonde genin, missing her jacket, and curled up in a corner crying. She was covered in blood and grime, bits of carnage sticking to her body.

Minato briefly let his eyes wander from his daughter to another part of the cave that nearly caused the war veteran to retch.

There was a large, bloody mass in a farther part of the cave. It was torn to bits, as if it had been thrown into a pit of starving, ravenous beasts. The limbs were torn from the body, but the arms seemed to have the most damage to them. Most of the flesh from the chest down to the stomach area was shredded off, leaving what was left of the entrails to spill out onto the floor and mix in with the blood pooling under the corpse.

"This is the work of a demon." Minato heard one of the ANBU mutter as he looked over the body of the girl on the work table. Minato tore his eyes away from the sight and rushed to his daughter, who was hugging a picture close to her chest.

* * *

It was all a blur for Naru. One minute she was following Tucker into his lair, she was facing the gate another minute later, and then the next minute she was in a hospital bed, yet again.

This time, however, she had chakra restraints.

Naru sighed and leaned back onto the pillows. She knew that everything that happened over the course of the mission was going to come back to her later.

_Hey, fox? What happened? I don't remember anything that happened after I saw the Gate._

**Oh, about that… I might have taken control over your body, busted out of the Gate and got revenge on that man.**

…

**Naru?**

…

**You still with me?**

… _YOU DID WHAT?_

If one was to be talking face-to-face with the demon known as the Kyuubi no Youko, they would see the large animal wince from the sheer volume of the scream. **Don't give me that Naru. If I just let you sit idle, you would still be trapped in the Gate right now, and I really hate how the Guardian looks at you.**

Naru could feel her friend's fur bristling at the mere mention of the Guardian. **By the way, when were you going to tell me about being able to use alchemy without an array?**

Naru was about to answer when her door opened and brought out of her musings. It was Shizune, who rushed out of the room. A few moments later, her 'teammates' from the mission entered, along with Tsunade, Moegi, and her grandmother, Koharu.

Naru smiled. "Hey Moegi, how are you doing?"

Moegi sniffled a bit before running up to the bed and tackling Naru, who caught her on reflex. Naru rocked her a bit before Koharu came and gently took the crying girl from the younger kunoichi.

"She came to say 'thank you' for yesterday, but she's still a bit shaken."

Naru nodded. "I understand. I'm still a bit shaken myself."

Koharu nodded and escorted Moegi out. When they were out of earshot, Tsunade and Minato both sat down, the former of the two with a pad of paper and a pen.

"Inochi, you can come in now."

* * *

Naru looked perplexed as Ino's father, Yamanaka Inochi, walked into the room with a grim look.

Naru smiled, trying to ease the mood. "What's up, flower man?"

Inochi fought back the smile that tried to make its way to his face at the nick name. "I'm sorry we could not meet up again on better terms, Naru-san."

Naru shrugged. "I've been through worse… okay, not as bad as this, but bad enough to shave some years off my life."

Minato was intrigued by this. "Naru, can you tell me about these experiences?"

Naru sat crisscross on her bed and crossed her arms. "Well, there was the time that Ero-Sennin threw me off a cliff during the Chunin Exams, and then he left me alone in a hotel to flirt with some lady when we had S-ranked missing-nin after me when we were looking for Oba-chan."

"WHAT?" Minato and Tsunade looked ready to strangle the Gama Sannin.

Naru gave Tsuande a smarmy look. "You've had your share too, Oba-chan. There was the time I got an Oonbu stuck to my back and you sent me out of the village when it got a certain size to see if 'fate' would stop being a bitch and be kind to me when it grew to be 3 meters."

It was Tsuande's turn to pale at Minato's glare.

"Oh, and there was also the time when Sakura had an allergic reaction from me sneezing some pepper on her and everyone thought that I gave her a disease that disrupts chakra by turning it into a cold."

Asuma blushed and looked away. Jiraiya, ever the one to love seeing his teammate in trouble, decided to press for more answers. "What happened then?"

Naru's look turned murderous. "She sent every ninja in the entire village after me, with orders to capture me on site. I thought that she gave into some of the council and decided to go on a Kyuubi hunt! And that's not all! When we found out the real reason Sakura had a cold, Tsunade said that it was a practice run of a procedure in case an intruder got into the village!"

By this time, Minato looked ready murder the two remaining loyal Sannin and the other occupants looked somewhere between greatly amused and horrified.

Tsunade was the first to recover. "Anyway Naru, we recovered all your belongings and moved them to Minato's house-"

"WHAT?"

_Revenge is sweet, brat._ Tsuande grinned. "It was the only safe place for both you and your research. As it turns out, the only reason why you were able to get your house so cheap is because it was sinking into the ground. You would be buried by this time in two years." At this point, Tsunade turned grim. "Naru, we need to know more about this Tucker man. He kidnapped an Academy student and affiliated with a group who tried to destroy the village."

Naru looked back at Inochi. "You brought him here in case I refused to cooperate, huh?"

Minato shot Tsunade another look.

* * *

Naru took a deep breath. "Shou Tucker was once a State Alchemist, just like my teacher. He was known as the 'Sewing Life Alchemist' due to his ability to transmute multiple types of chimera and was the leading expert."

"What's a chimera?" Sora asked, causing Hewie to growl a bit.

Naru leaned back. "That what was I was getting to next. A chimera, at least by alchemic standards, is a creature synthesized by alchemically "marrying" two or more dissimilar living beings into a new, complete form displaying attributes of its "components". Though a legitimate branch of bio-alchemy, chimeric research has seen very few significant strides in Amestrian history, or at least in recorded history, and has been described as a science built upon countless dead ends and false starts. Still, the production of such fantastical beings is possible with the proper alchemical expertise and skill.

"Shou Tucker had gained a bit of notoriety and earned his State Alchemist's License two years prior to the series by producing a chimera capable of human speech. Teacher, his brother, and I begin living with Tucker at his estate to pour over his library of texts and for Teacher to study for the State Alchemist Exam. We forged a bit of a friendly relationship with him as well as his young daughter Nina and their dog Alexander, though Tucker's wife was said to have left the family two years before. Tucker explained to us that bio-alchemy, especially in the field of chimeric research is experimental at best and results in a large number of failures and false starts. Tucker himself noted that, ever since the speaking chimera that earned him his license, he has yet to present an alchemical breakthrough worthy of his yearly State Alchemist assessment and feared that a failure this year will lose him his certification and research privileges."

Minato started. "Wait, he made a speaking chimera? Wouldn't that mean that he…" Minato trailed off and let his gave fall to Hewie.

Naru nodded, confirming the blonde Hokage's fear. "My Teacher passed his exam with flying colors, becoming the youngest State Alchemist in history at the age of 12. The Fullmetal Alchemist, Edward Elric." Everyone smiled at the relish Naru held in her voice. She rarely discussed her teacher and it was a chance to find out more about her years out of the village. "I was so proud of him, just as Nina was. At the same time, there was a serial killer named 'Barry the Chopper' going around. Teacher was sent to investigate on of the crime scenes and had a panic attack and fainted. We were then forced to move out of the house, but we snuck back in later that night.

"When we got back in, we found Tucker and his newest talking chimera. However, we couldn't find Nina or Alexander."

Everyone paled. Yamato recovered first, knowing full well what a madman's experiments were capable of. "Naru, are you saying that he used…"

"He was pressured by his commanding officer, Brigadier General Grand, the Iron Blood Alchemist, may that man burn in hell, to create something even better than the first talking chimera. The military was like politics, you bring in something good, you get a LOT of praise and opportunities. My Vati, Roy Mustang aka the 'Flame Alchemist', brought in a 12 year old prodigy who was able to use alchemy without an array. You can imagine all the praise he got. After all the pressure, Tucker just… snapped, and just like he did two years prior he made a chimera, but this time out of his daughter and her pet dog."

Naru bowed her head. "After having his death faked by some corrupt higher ups, Tucker was secretly smuggled to a lab where he made himself into a chimera and started doing experiments on chimeras, humans, and anything and anyone to try and create another Nina. The chimera Nina… she ran into another man named Scar. He later became a serial killer who went after State Alchemists. Had a tattoo on his right arm that allowed him use alchemy, but he stopped at the second step 'Deconstruction' and he killed Nina. Teacher, Al, and I were the first ones who found her remains…"

All was quiet before Yamato spoke up again. "Naru… who was used in the first talking chimera experiment?"

"… That monster used his own wife."

* * *

Minato looked over the notes Naru had told him about to finish the mission report, with the help of a translator aka Hewie. He sighed as he looked over the journals that Tucker had stolen. It was all boring until he came across a familiar array. It was the same one that had been on the floor of the cave.

After reading the paragraph next to the picture and putting two and two together, Minato finally allowed himself to cry.

One, that monster had attempted to revive his daughter and the doll was breaking apart, so he tried to recreate Naru's teacher.

Two, Naru had most likely euthanized the creation and sent it to this 'Gate' that Tucker was talking about.

Three, on an unrelated note, she had referred to another man as 'Vati,' the word for father.

* * *

Naru continued to move the rest of her belongings into the Namikaze estate. While the place was not as large as the Hokage mansion that Tsuande lived in, the old compound still had enough room to house her personal library, her research laboratory, and her personal room.

Naru also changed her appearance after losing most of her clothing. She had to admit, Ino had good taste in clothing. Naru's new outfit did suit her. She now wore a black shirt that was covered by and orange vest that had a blue trim like her old jacket. It even had the same red swirl on the back and two smaller swirls as drawstrings for the hood on the vest. She also wore two-colored pants. The legs of his pants were mainly orange with several of swirl-shaped buttons on the hem that attached the legs to the rest of the pants, which were black. She also wore the standard shinobi sandals and had gotten her ears pierced.

Naru heard a knocking at the doorway. She turned to see Minato at the doorway.

"What's up?"

Minato smiled. "Tsunade wants to see you."

* * *

Naru smiled as she entered the room, but it turned into confusion when she saw the rest of the Konoha 12 and Sora in the office as well.

"…Are we having an intervention or something?"

Tsunade shook her head. "They are here to go on the A-rank mission with you."

"Huh?" Naru was incredibly confused now.

Tsunade smiled. "Uzumaki Naru, your mission is to travel to the land of Ametris and see if you can make an alliance with the country. You have no time limit, but you must pay for everything else such as food, lodging, and travel, yourself. You shall also be head of the team. What is your answer?"

Naru looked like a kid who had been told that Christmas had come early. "I say Hell to the yes!"

* * *

AI: This is the longest chapter that I have EVER written. It's long for two reasons though. One, it's the conclusion to an arc. Two, it introduces a new arc. We are headed to Ametris next chapter everyone!

Meanings:

Baka- Idiot

Doton Soseijutsu: Shishi Dojō- Earth Release Resurrection Technique: Corpse Soil

Gama- Frog

Shout Outs:

Naru's Potion- Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker Blue Chu Jelly.

What Hewie looks like- I have avoided this since I had no idea what he should look like… and after talking with a buddy of mine, Hewie will look like Naga the Polar Bear Dog from Legend of Korra.

Components of the Human Body- Got that from the first episode of FMA.

All info about Tucker came from the FMA wikia.

Naru's pants- Think Roxas from Kingdom Hearts.

Naru's ear piercings are in the same places as Winry's piercings. Her earrings are the Fullmetal Earrings from the Broken Angel game.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto or Full Metal Alchemist, two geniuses own them, not me…

_Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain something of equal value must be lost. That is alchemy's First Law of Equivalent Exchange. _

_In those days, I thought was its one and only truth, as my teachers carved that into my skull. Then it came._

_The Philosopher's Stone._

_Those who possess it, no longer bound by the laws of equivalent exchange in alchemy, can gain without sacrifice... create without equal exchange. We searched for it... and we found it._

_I remember every one of my missions, the good and the bad. I was happy to be able to share my culture with my friends, but our experiences were ones for the books!_

_-Uzumaki Naru, 1917, Age 13_

Chapter 6: Look to the East

Naru smiled as she and her clones packed her travel bag. Finally, after all these years, she was going back to Ametris! Nothing could ruin her mood at the moment, not even Orochimaru taking over the village.

"We're going back to Ametris, Hewie. AMETRIS! Oh, I can't wait to see everyone again! Not just Vati and Mutti, Uncle Havoc, Uncle Breda, Uncle Falman, Uncle Fuery, Aunt Gracia, Elysia, and Winry…" Naru paused for a second before she squealed. "This is the best mission ever!"

Hewie looked amused from his corner of the room. **"I hope that you have fun Naru. The old hag wants to keep me here to help Moegi get over what happened."**

Naru stopped packing and gave a solemn nod. "Yeah… well, I already have the whole trip planned out! We're going to visit Dublith, Rush Valley, New Hissengart, Risembool, Youswell, Aquroya, Xenotime, Feuerwerk Village, and then Central. With the funds that we have, the most we can spend in a town will probably be a day at most."

Hewie raised an eyebrow. **"No East City?"**

Naru shook her head. "I got a letter from Uncle Havoc. They all moved back to Central after all those corrupt higher-ups were kicked out of office and imprisoned!"

Hewie gave one of his wolfish grins. **"It would be best for you to take your journal. It could serve as a guide for the trip."**

"Totally!"

* * *

Naru bounced on the balls of her feet as the rest of the Konoha 12 approached the large gates.

"Hurry up! Hurry up! We're burning daylight and I have the whole trip planned out!"

Minato sighed and placed a hand atop of Naru's head to stop her bouncing. "The places aren't going to just get up and walk away."

Naru gave him an incredulous look. "Last time Uncle Armstrong said that about the Central Library, it was burned down."

Minato took his hand off Naru's head. "Alright then, 'fearless leader', what are we going to do first?"

"Well, we have to get on the train first."

Most of the Konoha ninja gave Naru a confused glance. "What's a train?"

* * *

Naru smiled as her team looked out the windows of the moving locomotive. "This is a train!"

"We're going so fast! Faster than an average shinobi!" Hinata pointed out to her cousin, who was looking around the train car with his Byakyugan.

"There is no one else here in this… train car, am I correct?"

Naru nodded as she spread a map out on table that was originally one of her clones. "Yep. People from our country usually don't use the train. They mostly walk from place to place, like a pilgrimage. As for the train, well, they're usually used to transport goods."

Shikamaru looked at the map with interest. "So, that's the list of places we'll be visiting."

Naru gave him a thumbs up. "Yep, the first place we are visiting is Dublith. Might as well get that visit taken care of first."

"Huh, what do you mean?" Kiba looked over his own seat and the blonde's shoulder.

"Well, Dublith is where my teacher's teacher lives! She's really strong!"

From his spot near the back of the car, Sasuke's interest was peeked. "How strong is this woman?"

Minato looked up from the scroll that contained the language translation jutsu he had cast before they arrived in Dublith.

Naru gave the last Uchiha a smirk. "For her apprenticeship, she had to survive an entire month on Briggs Mountain with nothing but a knife. Think a winter in Yuki no Kuni, but with a blizzard every day."

One thought was on everyone's minds. _Is this woman crazy?_

* * *

Naru looked wistfully out the window and to the starry night. Dublith held many memories for her, mostly about Wrath, Greed, and the chimera people.

She remembered the one night stay on the island. Closing her eyes, she remembered the smell of the wood used for the fire that night and her teacher's story about the fox. She remembered how they got dinner that night, Alphonse crouching down in the shallows so that fish would get trapped in his armor.

She then let her face fall into one of sadness. Naru felt bad about not telling everyone the truth. She looked around to see that everyone was asleep for the night. Come morning, they would be in Dublith.

"The real reason we are coming here first… is because she doesn't have much time…"

* * *

Naru laughed as everyone exited the train, their legs shaking as they stepped onto the stone platform. "C'mon guys, it's no different than getting off a boat. We got to hurry, Izumi-sensei will be getting up from one of her rests right now."

"Rests?"

Naru turned to see Sakura with her hands on her hips. "Naru are we going to bug some poor woman?"

Naru shook her head. "Trust me Sakura, she's a tough one." Naru grinned. "She's the only person in the entire world that teacher and Al were afraid of, but she's a very nice person."

* * *

Kiba groaned as he took off his jacket and wrapped it around his waist. "It is so freaking hot here!"

Shino sighed at his friend. "Naru told us last night that Dublith is known for very high temperature and that we sould dress accordingly."

"Oh really?" Kiba scoped out his rather large team and saw that some had changed into lighter clothing, such as Hinata and Minato. He looked at Shino, shocked to see that his friend had taken off his jacket, but not his sunglasses.

"Don't look so shocked."

"Okay everyone!" Team Konoha turned to see Naru waving two small red flags with the Konoha leaf symbol on them. "Let's hit the pavement!"

* * *

Lee looked around the area with wide eyes, taking pictures and jotting down notes. "Gai-sensei, you would love this place. It shines of the true power of youth!"

"Then you should go to Yock Island for a while. My teachers had to survive there for a month when they were younger than us in order to pass a trial test."

Lee exploded with more words of praise while Sasuke looked on, unimpressed. Just what was so special about these people? They didn't have a bloodline, they were just normal people.

* * *

Naru smiled as they neared the Curtis residence when a certain house caught her eye. In the front yard, a little girl was playing with three cats.

Naru ran up the fence. "Oi, Menny!"

The girl looked up, a puzzled look on her face. "Do I know you?"

Naru was floored for a second, but she recovered. "Well, it has been two years…it's me, Naru! Izumi-sensei and I helped you make a grave for your cat Chico, remember?"

Instantly, Menny seemed to recognize her. "You're that short girl, Naru!"

Naru's face darkened for a second before returning to normal. "Don't call me that. Anyway, is Izumi-sensei home?"

Menny nodded. "Yeah, Teacher is home. She doesn't get out of bed much though since her operation, but she's doing better!"

_Operation, does that mean..._ Happiness surged through Naru as she nodded. "Thanks Menny. It was nice to see you again!"

* * *

Team Konoha finally arrived in front of a building with a large sign that read 'MEAT' on top of it. Naru's happy face then turned into one of fear.

"I really wonder how teacher's teacher is doing…"

"Hey there kids!"

"KYAAAAAH!" Naru fell to the ground at the sudden voice. She turned to see a rather muscular man with a white headband. "You're… Mason, right?"

Mason raised an eyebrow. "Yeah… who are you again?"

Naru stood up and brushed herself off. "Mason, it's me, Naru. Remember? I'm Ed's brat!"

Recognition spread over Mason's face. "You! You're the little whirlpool! I see you still dress in orange! And you're so tall now too!"

_This guy just loves to piss me off._ Naru sighed. "Yep, these are my teammates and our chaperone!"

Mason looked over everyone. "You all have headbands… wait, does this mean that you're Hokage now?"

Naru laughed and shook her head. "We're all genin, except for Shikamaru who's a chunin… and the tall guy. He's our Yondaime Hokage."

Mason shot a dark look at Minato before smiling at the others. "Well come on in! Sig and Izumi will be more than happy to see you!"

* * *

Once they got inside, Mason was shouting again. "Hey Sig, you'll never guess who's here! Naru's come to visit with her teammates and guess what? She's a genin now!"

Ino at this point leaned over to Naru. "Just how much of our village did you tell them about."

Naru smiled. "I only told them how our system of government and ranking system works. You act like I told them about the secret bunkers."

Everyone froze when a large man with dark hair and a beard walked out of the back of the store with a cleaver in his hand. The girls paled, the boys got into a fighting stance, Minato looked ready to ready a Rasengan. Naru, however, ran up to the man and tackled him into a hug.

"It's nice to see you, Mr. Sig!"

The large man smiled and ruffled the genin's hair. "It's good to see you again too. Would you like to see Izumi?"

Naru looked up and nodded. Jumping down from the hug, she motioned for everyone to follow.

* * *

"Mason, look after the store for me for a while, okay?"

The group followed Sig around back to a house. Sig went up to a window. "Izumi, Ed's apprentice is here." Sig then motioned for Naru to come up to the window. "See?"

Naru looked into the room to see the mighty and proud Izumi Curtis sitting upright in her bed with a book in her hands. She looked as healthy as ever, not even a single strand of gray hair marring her black micro-braid dreadlocks. Izumi looked up from her book with a look of shock on her face. "Naru Uzumaki?"

Naru grinned. "Hi Izumi-sensei! I came to visit you, and look, I even brought my graduating class, some friends, and yes we have a chaperone. Oh, and look, I'm a ninja now!"

* * *

Everyone sat outside at a large table Naru was able to create with alchemy, drinking tea after stuffing their faces with some infamous Curtis home cooking.

Naru sighed in content as she patted her stomach. "The cooking is even better than I remember it!"

Izumi smiled as she knocked on the stone table. "I'm happy to see that your alchemy has improved so much."

"I study every day to keep my mind in check."

This drew a snort from Sasuke, who received a smack to the head from Neji. The Uchiha glared back the Hyuuga, but before it could develop into a full-out glare war, Sig's glare put them back in place.

"So Naru, what have you been up to since we last saw you 2 years ago?"

Chouji rolled his eyes. "What hasn't she done these past 2 years?"

This sparked Izumi's interest. "Oh, please, do tell."

* * *

For the next several hours, the Konoha ninja exchanged tales of their graduation, missions, and even their first Chunin Exams. Hours of laughter also followed the various stories.

Izumi smiled. "I'm so proud of you Naru. I'm proud of all of you really."

Naru blushed. She had received a lot of praise when she traveled with Edward and Alphonse, but praise from their teacher was something different.

Izumi then gave Naru a serious look. "Naru, from here on out, don't call me sensei."

Naru's head shot up as she locked eyes with Izumi. Both females didn't seem sad, but rather happy.

"Thank you teacher!"

* * *

"What was that all about?" Tenten demanded once the girls had settled in their hotel room.

Naru smiled at her. "Izumi asked me not to call her teacher anymore because I'm not a pupil anymore, but rather her equal. For someone of her skill to say that to me… it means the world."

All the girls nodded in understanding. Hinata activated her Byakyugan and motioned to Sakura, who abruptly stood up and knocked on the door. "I hope you boys heard that too!"

Every girl laughed when they heard multiple pairs of scurrying feet.

* * *

At the same time, Minato was helping out with the butcher shop. He groaned when he felt Mason's glare directed at the back of his head. "Do you need to tell me something?"

"Yes, yes I do." Mason replied as he walked up to the blonde Hokage. Izumi looked on in interest from the doorway when Mason actually slapped the taller man.

"What was that for?" Minato demanded.

Mason glared at Minato again. "That's my retribution for what you did to Naru."

As Mason walked out of the room, Izumi walked in with a wet cloth. "Here, or your cheek will swell."

"Thank you." Minato winced as he held the moist cloth to his cheek.

Izumi looked him over once more and smiled. "You're her real father, aren't you?"

Minato froze, but then nodded. "She doesn't know. My daughter, well, she hates me."

Izumi shook her head. "It was a lot for her to take in at first, but the fact that wanted you to come on this mission, much less ordering her partner to get back up for you on her last mission, shows that she is slowly coming to accept you. One day, not now, but one day, she'll be ready."

Minato smiled. "Thank you, Mrs. Izumi."

Izumi's smile fell. "Until then…"

Minato gave a questioning look that turned into one of disbelief when Izumi threw him across the room. "I suggest that you stop acting like such a pansy and start acting your true role!"

Sig was there to immediately catch Izumi when she stumbled. "You pushed yourself."

Izumi smiled. "Thank you darling."

Minato winced as stood up. "She threw me out a window after helping me!"

* * *

The train shrill whistle caused everyone to jump, much to the humor of Naru and the Curtis family. Izumi gave Naru one last hug through the window. "If you see Alphonse while you're in Rush Valley, tell him that I'm doing better."

Naru nodded. "Please call Vati if you hear anything about teacher, okay?"

Izumi muttered something under her breath but nodded, causing Naru to smile for the umpteenth time that day.

Mason then handed something to Naru. "Before we forget, here. Happy Birthday Naru."

Naru took the box and opened it to find chocolate cupcakes decorated with orange icing. "Thank you guys so much!"

Sig smiled. "It's not every day you turn 13, am I right?"

Sora took the box from Naru to make sure that she didn't squash the pastries inside.

* * *

"So where are we going next?" Chouji asked as he shoved an entire cupcake in his mouth.

Naru chewed her bite in thought. She really missed Western cooking. She swallowed before taking out a map. "We're going to be in Rush Valley. It's known to be a central hub for automail. My teacher's friend Winry lives there right now under an apprenticeship."

"What's automail?" Neji asked, curious to know more about the new country and its products.

Naru leaned back in her seat. "Automail is the common term for automotive armored prostheses as used in the some people here in Ametris. Originally devised as a sort of motorized battle armor, automail eventually became advanced enough to double as artificial body parts for amputees desiring something more versatile than normal artificial limbs.

"Linked directly to the nervous system, an automail prosthesis does not usually require an external energy source, and can be moved at will like a natural appendage, taking electrical pulses from the nerves to power and regulate the various electric motors and pneumatic actuators inside. It's made out of various metals like copper, iron, or nickel. The drawbacks various to it is that it limits the ability to swim, it rusts so it needs constant attention, it'll break if you put too much strain on it, and the surgery is incredibly painful since it requires attaching nerve endings."

Naru looked over to Lee. "For a while, if Oba-chan couldn't help Lee, I was going to retrieve Winry and her grandma from here and so that they could give Lee a set so he could at least do some civilian work if his career as a shinobi took a turn for the worst."

Lee looked over at Naru, tears welling up in his eyes. "I barely knew you then, and yet you were going to take this journey all by yourself to help me so I could go on and lead my life? Uzumaki Naru, you truly are an ispiration! You truly have the Will of Fire burning inside you!"

Naru laughed. "Thanks Lee!"

* * *

AI: As you can see, each city will get about one chapter or one episode. I want to get to the Central Arc, but I want to give Naru some backstory as well. A lot of development will come during the trip to New Hissengart, as well as some tears.

Meanings:

Sensei- Teacher

Vati- Dad

Shout Outs:

Automail- Info taken from the wikia


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto or Full Metal Alchemist, two geniuses own them, not me…

_Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain something of equal value must be lost. That is alchemy's First Law of Equivalent Exchange. _

_In those days, I thought was its one and only truth, as my teachers carved that into my skull. Then it came._

_The Philosopher's Stone._

_Those who possess it, no longer bound by the laws of equivalent exchange in alchemy, can gain without sacrifice... create without equal exchange. We searched for it... and we found it._

_Looking back at Rush Valley… yeah, there is no way to describe it in just one word._

_-Uzumaki Naru, 1917, Age 13_

Chapter 7: Rush Valley

Naru grumbled as she looked over her map of Rush Valley. "Y'know, I should have asked for a new map of this place when Uncle Havoc asked if I wanted anything…"

"Great, the dobe got us lost again." Sasuke glared at his teammate.

Sora narrowed his eyes. "At least _she_ is trying! Not everything stays the same for years on end!"

"Wait a minute!" Naru kneeled down and started looking through her backpack. After a few seconds, she pulled out a screwdriver. "Hey Kiba, how good is Akamaru's nose?"

* * *

Everyone looked up at a sign that hung above a workshop that read _LeCoulte Automail_.

"This is the place." Naru mused as she looked at the tool in her hand. The handle had the name Winry Rockbell engraved on it. Gripping it, Naru pushed open the door, causing the welcome bell above the door to ring loudly.

"Hello!" A girl with three mechanical limbs walked out of the back room. "Welcome to…" She trailed off as everyone filed in, but kept her sights on Naru.

The young kunoichi smiled. "Hey Paninya!"

Paninya gasped and ran back into the room she came from. "Dominic! Naru's here! Naru's here!"

This time, an older man stepped out of the room, a scar evident on his chin. He looked wide eyed at the girl, as if he had seen a ghost. "Well I'll be…"

"Is everyone going to react to seeing Naru like they just saw some deity or something?" Tenten questioned.

* * *

"So, Winry isn't here anymore, is she?" Naru asked.

Dominic shook his head, giving a bark-like laugh. "She left the day before yesterday to go back to Risembool and her grandmother."

"I see." Naru mumbled. It was evident that she was disappointed.

Paninya then grabbed the girl's arm and dragged her out of the room. "Her number hasn't changed so let's call her!"

Once the two girls had left, Dominic smiled. "That girl was something else. Winry is the granddaughter of an old… colleague of mine. She's a prodigy to boot. I remember when she challenged that brat Edward to catch my assistant Paninya to get his watch back." Dominic's face then turned sober. "Then I find Winry waiting at my doorstep one day, asking to be my apprentice. Edward and Naru both disappeared and her friend Alphonse, Ed's little brother, had gone off to improve his skills. Last I saw of that kid, he wore a giant suit of armor. Next thing we know, he doesn't have any memories."

* * *

Naru swallowed as the ringtone became louder that her own heartbeat. She had not spoken to Winry in two year, except for the rare letter that was answered by her grandmother. The genin now knew it was due to Winry being apprenticed at Rush Valley.

"_Hello? Rockbell Automail, Pinako Rockbell speaking."_

Naru gasped and cradled the speaking end of the handset with her free hand. "Auntie Pinako, is that really you? Is it really, really you?"

"_Uh, yes, like I said before this is Pinako, but WHO ARE YOU CALLING AUNTIE?" _

Naru was ready to cry. She had missed that voice. "Auntie, it's me! It's Naru Uzumaki, Ed and Al's student! Is Winry home?"

Pinako was silent for a few moments. The next thing Naru heard was the old woman yelling for a certain female mechanic.

Naru was taking deep breaths to calm down, but lost her composure as a new voice came through the phone.

_"NARU? IS THAT REALLY YOU?"_

Naru broke down crying. "Winry, it's me! I'm so sorry! I-I should have called but-"

The next half hour was incoherent sentences and sobbing from both girls.

* * *

"Dad! Please, I need your help!" Came a new, panicky voice from outside. Everyone turned to see a man with a bandana and glasses rushing in. Along with him was a pregnant woman who was clearly in pain.

Dominic stood up. "Ridel, what is it?"

Ridel paled even more. "It's Satella! Her baby is coming and the doctor is out in the outskirts!"

Dominic yelled for his step-daughter. "Paninya, get Satella to the guest room now!"

Minato rushed to Ridel. "Do you have any idea what to do?"

Naru sniffled as she walked into the room. "What just happened?"

Ino started shaking the girl. "A WOMAN IS HAVING A BABY! WE HAVE TO HELP HER!"

"Does anyone have experience with this kind of thing?" Chouji asked.

Minato asked. "Yeah, my wife but…" The blonde Hokage shook his head. "Never mind that for now, we need to help this man!"

It was then Shino brought up a good point. "How many of us are medics or know medical jutsu?"

Sakura, Hinata, and Minato raised their hands.

Naru raised her hand. "Um, I've helped deliver a baby before, does that count?"

Kiba raised his hand as well. "I've helped my mom deliver some pups."

"I really don't think that Mrs. Satella will care about the experience right now!"

Minato took charge. "Okay! We need towels and hot water, stat!"

"I'll get the towels!" Ridel shouted as he opened the guest closet.

"Paninya, where is tub of water I was going to use today? The one that I use to cool down my tools?"

"I'm going to need help lifting it, but the water is cold by now!"

Naru clapped her hands. "I can fix that!"

"Hurry please!" Everyone turned to Satella, whose face was contorted in pain as she leaned back in her bed. "I think I can feel the baby coming!"

"EVERYONE WHO IS NOT HELPING GET OUT RIGHT NOW!"

* * *

Naru laid on the roof, arms outstretched, as the first star of the night began to twinkle brightly in the desert sky. She could hear the laughter coming from downstairs.

The baby had survived. Ridel and his wife were now the proud parents of a baby boy.

Naru covered her eyes remembering what Minato had said earlier. "He had a wife… who was most likely killed on the 10th…"

"You're not going to join in on the celebrations?"

Naru turned her head to see Shikamaru hovering over her. The genin of the duo sat up.

"Shikamaru, I have a question to ask, since we're best friends and all."

The chunin raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"What do you think of this?" Naru motioned to the town. "This journey and alchemy, I mean."

Shikamaru sat down next to her. "It's new, it's troublesome, it makes my head hurt trying to understand, and it fits you. You have this power at your hands that lets you do anything you want."

Naru laughed. "Yeah right. It's a wonderous power that lets me have anything I desire as long I can give up something of the same price. I can never have my parents back, people say that it's demon magic back home, and I have seen the horrors it can create, what it was used for."

"Stop, thieves!"

The two turned their heads to see a few hooded figures running into the mountains.

"Let's follow them Shikamaru!"

"How troublesome."

* * *

Naru and Shikamaru looked up the canyon walls that lined the path as they ran.

"For thieves, they doesn't seem professional." Shikamaru pointed out.

"We're not thieves!" Someone shouted.

The two Konoha shinobi felt something hit them on the back of the head before they passed out.

* * *

"What did you think you were doing you fools!"

"They were following us!"

"That didn't give you the right to hurt these children!"

Naru groaned and shook her head. Sitting up, she found that she was tied up with Shikamaru just a few feet away from her. Blinking a few times, Naru was able to make out the shapes of people, all of whom had dark skin and red eyes.

"Shikamaru! Shikamaru, wake up!" Naru hissed. "Shikamaru I know you are awake now get your ass up before I run out of here and tell Temari and your mom that you died because you wanted to take a nap!"

The Nara was immediately awake and started to untie his ropes. "I'm up. So, who are these people?"

"They're Isvalans." Naru answered, making sure that their captors heard them.

The Ishvalans turned around and raised their weapons to defend themselves.

"That is enough!" An old woman with a wrapped eye stepped out, followed by a boy with a scar on his shoulder, an older man dressed in the garb of a warrior priest, and two more boys following him. The last three were immediately recognized.

"Master Cleric, Rick, and Rio? How are you guys?"

"Naru!" Rick cheered and hugged the girl. Rio ran over and gave the girl a hug too.

* * *

"So, this is the infamous Naru you two have told us about, Rio, Rick, Master Cleric."

The three nodded. Rio smiled. "We haven't seen each other in almost 2 years. We're happy that you're safe."

Naru nodded. "Oh, this is Shikamaru Nara. He's a warrior from my village, just like me! He has a higher rank though."

The elder woman smiled. "It is nice to see that not everyone is out to exterminate us."

Shikamaru looked confused. "Why would they do that?"

His best friend sighed, her eyes looking dead. "The leader of the country at the time was just a puppet controlled by a small group of people. The Isvalans were a peaceful people, but riots broke out when an Amestrian soldier, who was one of the members of that small group in disguise, killed an Isvalan child. Later, a strike force was sent in the cover of night to kill off people to instigate a civil war. The soldiers of the strike force were later used as lab rats for chimera experiments. State Alchemists were deployed to control the riots, but it was more of a bloodbath than anything. Most turned in their certifications after the war, and I know that one was imprisoned, then later released, then killed by the serial killer Scar."

Most flinched at the mention of Scar's name. Naru continued. "After that, the Ishvalans were kept in camps and treated like animals until the new Fuhrer was put in place. So, what are you all doing out here? You're very far from any refugee colonies."

The woman smiled. "We are meeting up with the remainder of our people, and we plan to make our home across the seas. We cannot return to the ruins of our homeland and this country hates us. It will take more than a new leader to change that."

Naru thought for a moment before taking out a notebook. "Shikamaru, I will need your signature as well."

"What are you doing?" A boy asked as Naru tore out the sheet of paper and handed it to Shikamaru. The Nara sighed before signing the paper and giving it back to Naru.

"Listen. You need to go to the Village of Waves, you will be able to sail there. There, you will meet with a man named Tazuna. From there, send a message to a woman named Tsunade Senju, my village leader. We will welcome you and your people with open arms if you so wish. As proof, show this to Tazuna and send it to Tsunade later. If you prefer more of a desert home, send this to the Kazekage, Gaara of the Sand."

The boy looked at the elder woman. "Madame Shan?"

Shan looked at the paper in Naru's hands for what seemed like hours before taking it. "I thank you, Naru Uzumaki, Shikamaru Nara. We will never forget you."

* * *

"WHERE. HAVE. YOU. _**BEEN?**_" Screeched Sakura and Ino once the two dead last students of the year walked in the door.

"We were saving a race of people this country almost killed off." Shikamaru explained.

"Shika!" Naru was horrified.

"Kakashi-sensei could make a better excuse!" Sakura yelled at him.

Naru rolled her eyes. "It is true Sakura. We pretty much saved the Isvalans."

Minato walked up to both younger shinobi and glared down at them, causing them to pale. "I want an explanation about where you two were, Naru being our team leader be damned."

Shikamaru pointed to his team leader. "It was all her idea. We followed some thieves and saved their race by sending them to our country."

"Oh thanks a lot Shika!"

* * *

AI: Hey there! Yeah, haven't been around for this fic lately. FMA Muse has been weak as of late but I got this done at least! If any of you know of good FMA fics out there, let me know. Hope everyone keeps up with Naruto, it has been getting crazy!

Meanings:

Dobe- Loser, Dead-last, Dumbass

Kazekage- Wind Shadow

Shout Outs:

Shan is the old Isvalan woman from the manga and Brotherhood anime. She reveals to Edward that Scar killed Winry's parents.


End file.
